Campaign From The Left – Govern From The Right

On April 28, 2025, Canadians went to the polls and elected Mark Carney as Canada’s 24^th Prime Minister. But did they elect a Liberal or a Progressive Conservative?

I’m not the only person pondering that question.

Political journalist Chantal Hébert also questioned the prime minister’s choices during Peter Mansbridge’s Friday, September 5^th Good Talk podcast. Much of what she had to say about Mark Carney rang true for me.

Canadians did not intend to elect a traditional banker. Period. Rather they intended to elect a progressive who would use his banker’s skills to advance a progressive agenda.

Instead, since the election Prime Minister Carney has:

• Dropped the carbon tax.
• Abandoned the proposed digital services tax, without getting anything in return from President Trump.
• Abandoned Canada’s reciprocal tariffs on U.S. imports that comply with the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA).
• Cancelled Trudeau’s planned hike in the capital gains tax.
• Ended the requirement that automakers hit EV sales targets, beginning in 2026.
• Invited Kevin Roberts — known mastermind behind the Project 2025 plan to overhaul the U.S. government — to the recent Liberal cabinet retreat.

Some Liberals are becoming uneasy with Carney’s decisions, including publicly opposing the recent invite to Kevin Roberts, and along with some environmental groups, are questioning Carney’s commitments to addressing climate change.

A number of Indigenous groups are expressing unease at his plans to fast-track certain major projects by bypassing federal laws, if necessary, as they are worried about potential conflicts with Indigenous rights.

It is becoming more and more of a concern to me that Mark Carney may, in fact, turn out to be Brian Mulroney light.

However, it is still very early in Carney’s mandate, and he has only begun to unroll what he calls his government’s industrial strategy. What is not yet clear is how his plans will be implemented, and how – or if – they will continue to honour his party’s progressive and environmental commitments.

Hopefully my concerns will turn out to be ill-founded. Only time will tell.

Daily atmospheric CO₂ [Courtesy of CO2.Earth]

Latest daily total (September 23, 2025): 423.93ppm

One year ago (September 21, 2024): 422.19ppm